Access control is among the buildingsystem that, in this Internet of Thingsera, can become digital- rather thananalog-based and in doing so, providebuilding owners with both informationand more control over the system’s func-tions. Axis Communications describedsome of the technological and businessopportunities this transition could cre-ate in its white paper “IP opens doors toa new world of physical access control.”The company explained that the mi-gration of access control from analogto digital will bring benefits compara-ble to those achieved by migrating videosurveillance from analog to InternetProtocol, including lower installationcosts, more configuration and manage-ment capabilities, enhanced system ver-satility, and the ability to integrate withother security products. “IP technology isnot totally unknown to or unused in theaccess control industry,” Axis observed,“but existing systems have not been ableto fully exploit the advantages of IP.

“Typically, a legacy access controlsystem is dependent on having eachdevice—card reader, handle, door lock,door position switch—hard-wired withRS-485 cable into one central unit orcentral server. Besides being proprietarysystems, which confines the end userto one single provider of hardware andsoftware, these solutions often tendto be very complex and require ex-pert personnel to handle installationand configuration.

“Furthermore, when expanding traditional analog systems the process is
complicated by the need to consider that
a typical central controller is built to accommodate a certain maximum number of doors, normally 4, 8, 16, or 32. Not

The iStar Ultra LT Door Controller from Johnson Controls’ Software House brand
provides IP architecture and enterprise-level features for small to mid-sized access
control deployments, the company says.